Taliban claims to have shot down US military plane in Afghanistan


Devdiscourse News Desk | Kabul | Updated: 27-01-2020 21:35 IST | Created: 27-01-2020 19:51 IST
Taliban claims to have shot down US military plane in Afghanistan
  • Country:
  • Afghanistan

Taliban has claimed that it has shot down a plane carrying US military personnel in Ghazni on Monday, Reuters reported quoting Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban. The group also claimed that all personnel on board, including high-ranking officers, were killed in the crash.

"The plane, which was on an intelligence mission, was brought down in Sado Khel area of Deh Yak district of Ghazni province," said Mujahid.

A senior defense official investigating the crash said no senior US official was killed and added that they were still investigating the cause of the crash. No one from the US military was immediately available for comment.

According to the statement, the plane was used for espionage purposes. The group has also claimed that the bodies of all onboard including alleged CIA officers are in their custody.

The US military had earlier said it is investigating reports of an airplane crash in Taliban-controlled territory in Afghanistan. US Army Major Beth Riordan, a spokeswoman for US Central Command, however, said it remained unclear whose aircraft was involved in the crash.

It was earlier being speculated that the plane belonged to the state-owned Ariana Afghan Airlines, however, the company said the rumors were "not true".

Update: An aircraft that crashed in Afghanistan on Monday was a small U.S. military plane, U.S. officials told Reuters. The officials, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said there were no indications so far that the plane had been brought down by enemy activity. One of the officials said there were believed to be less than 10 people on the plane.

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